There have been tonnes of superhero movies coming our way recently, but they’ve at least shown some variety in tone, stories and characters. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought us political dramas (Captain America), heist films (Ant-Man) and of course, a film with a talking racoon and a tree-man. Say what you will about Suicide Squad, at least it tried to be distinct from Batman v Superman despite taking place in the same universe. Logan isn’t exactly what you’d expect a superhero film to be like, but that’s what makes it so special.

Logan is intended to be the final appearance of Hugh Jackman in the iconic role of Wolverine, and it is such a fitting end. Here we find an aged Logan in the year 2029, in hiding and taking care of Professor X (Patrick Stewart, fine in the role as usual). Adventure, as it is, comes calling again when Logan is asked to take a young girl called Laura (Dafne Keen) to a place called “Eden” where she can be safe. There is, of course, more to Laura than meets the eye, and she and Wolverine are pursued by the sinister “Reavers”.

We’ve all joked about how overexposed and overused Wolverine is, but here, he is a character one really wants to see more of, one who makes two hours and a half fly by. Jackman believably plays a character who’s seen a lot and been through a lot, and yet still grows throughout the movie. He has several conversations and interactions with Professor X and Laura and all of them are well-performed.

Wolverine may be the main focus of this film, but the other characters are also played exceedingly well. As mentioned before, Patrick Stewart turns in another exceptional performance as Professor X, even adding small touches of levity here and there. Laura has very few lines in the film, but Keen still creates an intriguing and likable character.

Logan is not exactly a kid-friendly film (even though it does acknowledge that children do indeed love Wolverine). The first sentence in the film contains the F-Bomb, and there’s plenty of blood, impaling and decapitations. Despite its tone being the polar opposite of that of Deadpool, they are at the same level when it comes to profanity and violence. The profanity and violence, however, don’t feel too gratuitous; they emphasise the horror of the situation, and the state of the title character. The film doesn’t feel like it’s trying too hard like a lot of post-The Dark Knight comic flicks, the darkness seems to come naturally.

Wolverine doesn’t go out with a bang, but it feels appropriate that he doesn’t. The final battle is satisfying but not spectacular, fitting for the grizzled Wolverine. This is supposed to be his final story, and it feels it. Tribute is even paid to the history of the Wolverine character itself through the actual appearance of an X-Men comic book factoring into the plot, which is done much better than one would expect it to. With all that, Logan is definitely the finale the character deserves.